High School Days
by sandypenguin6
Summary: Maka's a cheerleader, honour student, and self-proclaimed bookworm. Soul's a laid-back, music-loving delinquent. Let's take a dive into cliche high school romance! Cover image by Burdge
1. Prologue

Fighting at Death City High School was a regular occurrence. Not only because the students had extremely violent and hot-headed tendencies, but because the teachers actually encouraged it. Fights were allowed to take place as long as a teacher was present (something about getting out their anger and frustration in a supervised environment). The teens really went for it. They'd try to set records, make a name for themselves. Become stronger.

Maka Albarn didn't really see the point in it.

In the real world, she didn't need brute strength or fighting skills to get her into university or the job of her dreams. Those were her only goals. She had no reason to fight. But that didn't stop her from wondering about those who did.

Maka had been reading outside, waiting for her usual bus home after cheerleading practice when it happened.

The doors of the school burst open, students flooding from it as quickly and fluidly as water. Their voices carried through the air and shattered Maka's train of thought. She sat up and adjusted her black and red cheerleading uniform, not bothering to set her book down. She knew it was going to be a fight.

She also wasn't the least bit surprised when, after a small area had cleared for the makeshift fighting ring, Black Star's voice could be heard in the center. Maka rolled her eyes. He was always the one picking fights, for good reason. Being the only undefeated fighter in the school was really inflating his already-giant ego.

"Come on, man!" Maka heard Black Star yell to his challenger. "I don't wanna get you sent to the hospital." Maka knew that Black Star only gave his opponents an opportunity to leave the fight for show. Plus no one in that school would even dare to back down, thinking it dishonourable or something. Man, this school sure was messed up.

"I think I'll take my chances." This voice was so calm, focused. Maka had never heard it before. It wasn't any of Black Star's usual opponents. Her curiosity caused her to finally look up from her book to watch the fight.

Inside the ring of students she saw Black Star standing erect with his arms crossed across his chest, staring down his challenger. Maka didn't recognize the other boy standing directly across from Black Star. From the distance that Maka was sitting, she could only make out the tall frame and violently white messy hair of the unknown opponent. His stance was relaxed, though; not like he was afraid or even ready to fight. Maka became inexplicably worried for the newcomer.

After the supervising teacher, Sid, had officially allowed them to engage in the fight, Black Star made the first move. His skillful jabs and punches had been mastered from years of martial arts training that his parents put him through. Maka watched as the other boy deftly skirted around his punches, not trying to take the offensive at all. _What's he thinking?_ thought Maka. No _one's gonna wanna watch a fight where one opponent isn't even engaging the other._ After a while Black Star caught on to this too and pulled away.

"Dude, you've gotta punch me or everyone'll think you're a coward." Black Star was barely even breathing heavily. He truly was the best at this, although Maka found herself cheering on the boy with white hair.

Black Star's nonchalant opponent shrugged. "If that's the way you want it." The newcomer balled up his fist and sent a very sloppy punch toward Black Star's head. Maka cringed, knowing that Black Star would be able to ease around that. Sure enough, Black Star had ducked under the other boy's fist and had bashed him across the face within the span of 2 seconds. The crowd gasped as the white-haired boy fell to the ground. The sound Black Star's fist had made when it connected with his opponents face made Maka shiver. The boy didn't get up and Black Star was declared victorious.

Maka watched for the boy to get up but he didn't. Even as the crowd dispersed, Maka saw that he was laying flat on his back, just staring at the sky. At that moment Maka's bus arrived so she couldn't pay attention to that weird kid anymore. As she studied her History textbook on the bus, the image of that boy staring at the sky kept creeping into her mind. She decided that that was definitely the worst fight she'd ever seen at Death City High.

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 **A/N: Hello, readers! I have been messing around with this idea for a while now. Since I have a few chapters already written out I've decided to share it with you guys! Lemme know what you think! I want to try to update this weekly or bi-weekly if possible if you guys like it and the regular chapters will be slightly longer than this prologue. Thanks! Stay awesome, readers! :)**


	2. Intense Studying

**A/N: Thanks a bunch to everyone who reviewed/favourited/followed this story! You guys kept me motivated during the writing process! :) This chapter is a little overdue but it's pretty long so I think that makes up for it. ;)**

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The first football game of the season came at an unwelcome time for Maka. The evening before her big History test and English essay? It was all she could think about as she stood on the sidelines; a fake, bright smile plastered on her face like always, calling out cheesy cheers to their team. She inwardly groaned. What was the point? The Death City High School football team hadn't won a game all season, but that was mostly because of the most ostentatious player: Black Star.

How a player that self-centered could remain a quarterback (pretty much the most important one on the field) was beyond Maka's scope of comprehension. Instead of passing the ball to a fellow teammate, he would almost always assuredly try to rush right through the opposition's lines. Even after all that, usually resulting in Black Star losing the ball, he'd just laugh and give himself even more praise; none of which ever seemed due.

Maka turned to her best friend and fellow cheerleader Tsubaki. "I still don't get why you're with him." They could hear Black Star laughing from the other end of the field. When he was clearly in their line of sight, he waved at Tsubaki and gave her a thumbs up.

Tsubaki giggled and waved back before turning to Maka. "Oh, Black Star's alright. He's really got a lot of talent and a lot of heart. He just…needs someone to encourage that behaviour out of him." Tsubaki blushed and looked down.

"Besides, Maka." Another cheerleader and friend of theirs, Liz, spoke up, leaning past Tsubaki to look Maka in the eye. "What do you know about relationships anyway? You've never had a boyfriend! Or a friend who's a boy, for that matter!"

At that Maka blushed and stared straight ahead. Normally she was used to Liz's forward attitude, but that was a low blow. They all knew why she felt that way about men.

"Liz didn't mean it like that!" Tsubaki was quick to speak up for her friend. "I'm sure that when the right guy is there for you, he'll make himself known."

Maka rolled her eyes. "Yeah well I'm not even looking for that kind of relationship anyways, thank you very much!"

The opposing team got another touchdown and a field goal before half-time came. Once the buzzer went off Maka immediately ran to her bag sitting by the bleachers.

"Studying again?" Liz groaned.

"Yup. Got a big test in History and an English essay due tomorrow! Gotta hit the books." Maka smiled.

"Sheesh! Maybe this is why you can't get a boyfriend! You're already attached to your studies!" Liz placed her palm on her forehead, as if Maka's life choices were personally ailing her.

Tsubaki shushed Liz and turned to Maka, a knowing smile on her face. "If you want some place quiet, I suggest just behind the bleachers. Everyone will be leaving to get snacks or go to the rest room. It should be okay for half-time."

Maka smiled back at Tsubaki, trying to forget what Liz had just said. "Thanks, Tsu. See ya in a bit!" With that, Maka turned on her heel and dragged her bag towards the back of the bleachers.

As she headed towards the back of the bleachers she couldn't help but reflect on what Liz had said. _Well, so what if I don't have a boyfriend? Just because Liz can get with whomever she pleases in the entire school she thinks she knows what a good relationship for me would look like?! No, I don't understand that. I'll find a man when I'm good and ready. And maybe that'll be never!_

With an audible "hmph!", Maka sat herself down at the back of the bleachers, sitting cross-legged on the freshly-mown grass. The stadium lights beyond the top of the bleachers gave her just enough light to study her history textbook from. Without further ado, Maka pulled her notes and textbooks from her pack and intently studied them, her practiced eyes only needing to take in the information once to let it stick. She was fortunate in that regard; much less effort for studying that way.

After about 20 minutes of this, Maka got bored and put her textbooks away. To cool down she took out her latest recreational novel (one that she had already reread several times), _Jane Eyre_. Though she may act like romance didn't interest her in the slightest, there was something about the way the 19th century writers captured the emotions of falling in love that captivated her. She cracked the book open to one of her favourite sections: when Jane is rebuking her lover Rochester.

"' _Do you think I can stay to become nothing to you? Do you think I am an automation? – a machine without feelings? And can bear to have my morsel of bread snatched from my lips, and my drop of living water dashed from my cup? Do you think, because I am poor, obscure, plain, and little, I am soulless and heartless? You think wrong! – I have as much soul as you – and full as much heart! And if God had gifted me with some beauty and much wealth, I should have made it as hard for you to leave me, as it is now for me to leave you. I am not talking to you now through the medium of custom, conventionalities, nor even of mortal flesh: it is my spirit that addresses your spirit; just as if both had passed through the grave, and we stood at God's feet, equal – as we are!'"_

"You look pretty intense there."

Maka almost had a heart attack when a voice spoke out and pierced her thoughts like a needle on a rapidly expanding balloon. She turned around abruptly to find the silhouette of a young man sitting under the bleachers, leaning against the opposite wall, face hidden in the shadows, but undoubtedly staring at her. Maka, embarrassed for no real reason, stood up and brushed the grass from her cheer skirt, tugging nervously at her pigtail, still facing the boy.

Even in the dimming light, she could make out the slight reflection of light off of his teeth (which, even standing so far away, Maka could tell were sharper than the average teenagers'). He was smirking at her.

"What?" His low voice spoke again. "Did I scare you?"

Maka couldn't believe that this random guy was teasing her. Who did he think he was, anyway?

"Of course you scared me, what the hell do you mean? I was sitting here minding my own business and…" She began tugging on a stray piece of hair that had fallen from one of her pigtails. "Just how long have you been sitting there?"

Maka noticed the familiar red glow and smoke puff which indicated that this guy was smoking a cigarette. He chuckled. "Since before you got here."

 _So he was there the whole time? How did I not notice? Was he watching me? That's super creepy!_

Maka coughed involuntarily once she noticed his cigarette. "Y'know, smoking kills."

The boy shrugged, standing to his full height (much taller than Maka) and dropping the cigarette on the ground, snuffing it out with the toe of his shoe. "I only do it when I'm bored."

"Riiiight. So, why were you watching me, again?" Maka was instinctually distrustful of this boy.

He shrugged again and put his hands in the pockets of his ripped jeans. He was infuriatingly nonchalant about all this! "Nothing else to do."

"Um, you could be watching the _game,_ instead of creeping on girls who have no idea you're watching them."

"I'm not really into sports that much. Plus I find that the view can be much better over here." He smirked again. Maka could tell that he was really enjoying himself. She was this close to smacking him on the head with a textbook.

Trying to hide the blush creeping on to her face, she took a step forward, attempting to take the offensive. "Well, if you don't like sports, then why are you even at a football game in the first place?"

His eyes narrowed. "I really don't think that's any of your business, bookworm." Maka's face went completely red at his nickname and she took one step closer to him, getting close enough in the dim light to notice his messy white hair as she did so.

"I know who you are! You're that kid who tried to pick a fight with Black Star a few days ago." As if confirming her realization, Maka noticed a cut and bruise below his right eye, probably where Black Star had punched him in the face. "You know, it's never a good idea to pick a fight with him. He's undefeated in the school at hand-to-hand."

The boy's smirk returned as he stared down at her, his expression softening a little. "Thanks. I'll keep that in mind for next time."

Though he looked more relaxed, his sarcasm was still off-putting to Maka. She took a step back again, and then the boy actually looked apologetic.

"Whoa, hey. What's the big deal? Just trying to make conversation."

"Well maybe I didn't want it in the first place." Maka was almost growling. This guy sure had some nerve; watching her, teasing her, then thinking they could just have a normal conversation? She didn't even know his name!

At that moment the buzzer went off again, signaling the end of half-time. Maka stooped down to pick up her backpack, about to give a curt nod of farewell to the mystery boy when he spoke again.

"Soul."

"Huh?"

"That's my name. It's Soul. What's yours, bookworm?"

She scoffed at his unconventional name but answered. "Maka."

"Nice knowing you, Maka."

"Same here, Soul." She turned and walked away from him, not meaning a word of her last sentence.

Maka fumed inwardly as she walked back to the sidelines. She didn't know why, but that guy really got on her nerves.

"Hey guys." Her tone was less than pleasant as she dropped her bag in its usual spot and rejoined Tsubaki, Liz, and the others.

"What's up, Maka? You look like you just stepped out of a sauna." Liz gave her a questioning look.

"What do you mean?"

"Your face is bright red," Tsubaki whispered.

Maka reached up to touch her face. She immediately felt the intense heat radiating from it which only proved to make her heat up more.

"Was studying that intense today?" Liz asked sceptically.

Maka took her position in the lineup, eyes facing forward. She was going to cheer for her team and only allow her mind to wander to the information she just studied. The tall, white-haired boy called Soul certainly wouldn't worm his way into her thoughts if she could help it.

"Yeah. It was more intense than usual."

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 **A/N: I used that giant quotation from Jane Eyre as the section of the novel Maka was reading because I think that the way they talk about connecting souls romantically in that book is just perfect and also connects with what I'm trying to do in this fanfic very well! Anyway, how do you guys like the actual story so far? Review if you want and I'll be happy to respond! Thanks for taking the time to read this! Stay awesome!**


	3. Relaxing Studying

**A/N: Hey guys! Wow, this chapter has been a LONG time coming! But, y'know, work and volunteering and family issues. :/ Thanks so much to everyone who reviewed/favourited/followed the story so far! It means a lot to me that I'm getting any recognition at all! :) I dedicate this chapter to you, loyal readers!**

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Maka's essay writing and test-taking the next morning had been a success. Even though her friends were never surprised at her high grade point average, Maka always felt relieved to see a high number on a test paper or words of praise on an essay. It was the one thing she knew she was really good at, and she loved it.

At lunch that day, Liz decided to skip the next few periods with her newest boyfriend and suggested Maka join them.

"For the last time, Liz: no! N-O!" Maka was actually forced to look up from the book she had propped up against the edge of the cafeteria table so she could eat and read at the same time.

"Come on Maka!" Liz let her face fall from the hand she was leaning it against and onto the table dramatically. Patti giggled and tapped her big sis on the top of the head jovially.

"I have no idea why you continue to ask me." Maka's boredom had her eyes falling slowly towards the open pages again.

"They just want you to broaden your horizons, Maka." Tsubaki gave her a warm smile and patted her lightly on the shoulder. Maka smiled genuinely at Tsubaki, who seemed like the only one on her side a lot of the time.

"If by 'broaden her horizons' you mean 'get her to have a life' then yes, that's what I'm trying to do." Maka's dirty blonde pigtails swished against her reddening cheeks as she lifted her head quickly to glare at her friend. Liz only gave her a cold glance before sitting up again. "Well all of you goody-two-shoes are boring me to death. Patti? Wanna head out?" Liz's younger sister stood quickly and gave her older sibling a flamboyant salute.

Tsubaki waved at them as they left but whispered to Maka. "You know they just want you to be happy. They mean well."

"I know they do. But can't they see that I'm happy enough already? I've got good grades, a place on the cheer squad, a roof over my head, food to eat…and a friend like you." Maka gave her best friend an over-the-top wink and Tsubaki giggled.

"I know Maka. Just…" Tsubaki sighed and stood up "Try to let other people in sometimes, okay?"

Maka nodded and stared up at her friend. "Where are you going?"

"Black Star's got football practice and I said I'd watch him." Tsubaki's blush spread quickly across her whole face and Maka rolled her eyes, smirking.

"Okay, fine. Tell him he's getting harder to cheer for the more times he makes us lose."

"Very funny…" Tsubaki waved over her shoulder as she exited the cafeteria. After Maka finished the chapter of her book she checked her cell phone for the time. Only 12:30? She still had half an hour left of her lunch period.

Maka decided to ditch the cafeteria and find a quiet spot in the hallway to sit and study, which is what she normally did when her friends weren't around. Wandering around the corridors and looking for the most secluded spot with the least noise in a school like that was quite a feat, but Maka managed to do it. She relished her alone time, but she realized that Tsubaki had a point, apart from her dad and the girls on the cheer squad she didn't really make the effort to talk to anyone. In fact, she regularly avoided talking to her dad as much as possible. Ever since her parents got a divorce and her mom had to travel to the Middle East for work, Maka had to live with her least favourite caregiver. She resented the fact that even though he broke her family apart by cheating on her mom all the time, Maka's dad still tried to act like he was a perfect father and that they were the happiest family ever. Just thinking about it increased the length of Maka's strides and made her countenance more forbidding as she traipsed down the hall.

She settled down on the floor in the Music Hallway in a huff, trying to get her mind off of her dad and Tsubaki's advice. Maka decided that retreating into her studies to get her mind oriented again was the best option to calm her down.

However, not 5 minutes into studying, the sound of a piano being played began to echo through the hallway. Maka rolled her eyes and closed her book. _Not surprising,_ she thought. _I should've expected that, sitting in the Music Hall._

As she was beginning to head towards the next accessible hallway, the swelling music and despondent melody of the piano caught Maka's attention and made her head towards the source of the music instead. Her brain kept scolding her for getting distracted from her very important study time, but the lure of the music had an almost hypnotic affect on her senses, heightening them so that she couldn't ignore the pull she felt towards the open practice room door. As Maka silently pushed open the door and peeked around the corner, the first thing that caught her attention was the messy, white hair of the pianist in question. Her heart stopped, and then her blood boiled. Flushed with embarrassment at her discovery, Maka burst into the small room unceremoniously and yelled as loud as her surprised and humiliated voice could carry:

" _IT'S YOU?!"_

To which the player slammed his fingers roughly against the keyboard and screamed in an equally high manner:

" _What the HELL_?!"

Immediately following this, he proceeded to fall over the back of the bench and land square on his back. He tilted his head back to look upside-down at Maka, who was still seething. Soul sighed loudly and rolled his eyes to look up at the tiled ceiling. "What was that about, bookworm?"

 _Even after I startle him that badly he still manages to be so chilled out? Is this kid part robot or something?!_

Maka now turned an even brighter shade of pink, realizing that the intensity of her outburst was wholly unnecessary. Maka put her most perturbed look on her face and planted her hands on her hips.

"I was trying to study, _Soul_." She put as much venom and abhorrence into his name as possible, as if just saying it left a bad taste in her mouth.

If he understood her implication, he didn't show it. Soul proceeded to sit up and cross his legs underneath him like a primary schooler, but gave her a look of annoyance that was anything but juvenile.

"You must be damn insane if you think that the Music Hall is a nice quiet place to study."

His tone of voice got under her skin again and her stance became even more guarded. "It normally is at this hour."

"So what, you were coming in here to tell me to shut up?" Soul rolled his eyes.

"No, I…" Maka reluctantly realized that she would have to pay him a compliment in this situation if she wanted to explain why she cared to look in the first place. She took a deep breath and tried to talk to him like he wasn't an infuriating boy, but one of her friends, like Tsubaki or Liz.

"Soul…I actually thought that your playing was really good. Beautiful, actually." Maka awkwardly tugged at her pigtail as Soul's eyes widened in shock.

"You're serious."

"Yeah…" Maka smiled, finding herself becoming more relaxed. "I've always loved the way the piano sounded. My mom used to play a lot… It's just really calming."

"Same goes for with studying, I take it?" Soul flashed her a smile and she was again taken aback by the unnatural sharpness of his teeth.

"Yeah, I guess… Wait, how do you know that?"

Soul chuckled; a deep sound that made Maka's skin tingly in a different way than he normally made her feel. "Because that's all you do. Well, that and read your freaking 500-page novels!"

Maka's blush returned and she looked down at the tips of her sneakers. "You notice?"

"Maka, I think everyone notices… and when you haven't got your face in a book you're so uptight!"

"What do you mean?!" Her tone was becoming accusatory again.

"I mean…" Soul walked forward until he was directly in front of her and tapped her on the head with two fingers. "You can't turn off that big brain of yours and just relax. You always have to be doing something."

Maka backed up and glared at him, feeling her emotions harden against him once more. "Are you, for real, stalking me?"

"No…"

"Then how do you know so much about me?!"

There was that smirk she loved to hate. "Let's just say I can read you like a book."

Maka's resolve crumbled a little and her face fell. She was totally predictable. Not only her friends, but even this relative stranger was telling her to let others in; to loosen up…

Maka squared her shoulders and looked Soul in the eye. "Soul, if you wouldn't mind playing that song again, I think I'd like to study in here for the rest of lunch period. You're calming music will help make me less uptight, don't you think?" She smirked back at him before she turned to retrieve her bag from the doorway.

Soul chuckled again and turned to the piano, resuming play almost immediately.

Soul's music continued playing for the rest of the period while Maka sat in a chair in the corner of the room, idly turning the pages in her Biology textbook. And for once, none of the words on the pages were sinking into her mind in the slightest. Only the sound of the piano, and the smile of its player.

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 **A/N: Since I'm going on vacation this coming week, I'll hopefully have more time to write the next few chapters in advance so there won't be as long of a wait time! Stay awesome, everyone! :D**


	4. Cracks in the Facade

**A/N: I'm officially the worst author ever! I haven't updated this story for a month and a half! Sorry for the delay but life seemed to get in the way more and more and eventually I forgot what I wanted to do with this story in the first place. Unfortunately, I'm starting university next month so I have no idea how often I'll get to update from them on, but I really don't want to give up on this story! All of you guys who review and wait for my updates are such treasures! :)**

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Soul didn't mean to keep skipping classes, it just kinda ended up happening. His mom was getting on his case about it more and more often but he'd learned to tune her out like he would the raucous noises of the school while he'd be playing his music.

Music. Now there was his passion. But his parents were too traditional to let him go for something like that. Those were the only classes he actually attended now. Even with the great grades he'd always gotten in that area, his parents would always push him towards other more "practical careers".

Soul rolled his eyes as he made his way into the school. He only had two reasons to keep coming to school full time. One was to keep his parents pacified; the other was Maka Albarn.

He didn't know what it was about her. He'd always noticed her. Her permanently focused expression, her no nonsense attitude, her ability to maintain her GPA, extra-curriculars, and the insane amount of books she'd read. She was captivating. An enigma amongst all of the other idiots at the high school. Soul would catch his thoughts drifting towards her as his fingers tapped out an especially graceful and breath-taking piece on the piano. When he'd read a particularly long word in a textbook (if he even made the effort to crack one open), Soul would wonder whether or not she'd know its meaning. He never used to pay attention to people walking in the halls, but now he'd be looking around, trying to catch a glimpse of her.

And that's exactly what he was doing when she walked right into him, dropping her books everywhere.

"Oh sorry, I was just-" Maka looked up at Soul with her light olive-green eyes and an angry blush spread to her face, much to his enjoyment.

"Hey there, bookworm." He greeted her the way she'd grown accustomed to, spending most of her free periods sitting with him in his practice room while he played and she studied. They rarely spoke, which is probably why she found this encounter so awkward.

She responded in an irritated mumble, "Don't call me that, Soul."

He gave her an exaggerated frown. "Aww… I thought it was our thing."

"We don't have a thing…" Her voice was getting lower and lower with her increased level of displeasure, like an encroached animal baring its fangs in preparation to retaliate. Soul knew that he was annoying the hell out of her but he couldn't seem to stop rubbing her the wrong way. The way he got her to react to him so intensely gave him a sick sort of satisfaction.

Before he could come up with another biting retort, three girls appeared at Maka's side.

The tall blonde one gave him a glare. "Is this loser bothering you, Maka?"

Before his feelings could get hurt, Maka came to Soul's defense. "No! I mean, yes he was bothering me but… he does that pretty often. I'm used to it."

A girl with wide eyes and a long black ponytail which Soul recognized as Maka's best friend Tsubaki looked confused. "Maka, you never talk to guys… Is he your long-lost brother or something?"

Maka rolled her eyes. "Please, you know that's not true. This is Soul. He's a pretty good piano player…" She looked down at the floor, a touch of red lingering in her cheeks from the compliment she uttered.

The glaring blonde then smirked at her smaller friend. "I didn't know you were into musicians, Maka."

"I-It's not like that!" Soul had to keep himself from chuckling as Maka's face turned beet red.

Soul kept on smirking as Maka's two blond friends continued to antagonize her in front of him. It wasn't until the hallway was almost completely deserted that Tsubaki tugged on her friend's sleeves.

"Liz, Patti… let's go! History class will start in a few minutes!" While the sisters let Tsubaki drag them off, Maka smiled and waved while Soul looked on.

"I'm glad I finally got to meet your other friends."

Maka gave him a smirk he's gotten used to seeing during their study sessions "Did you just insinuate that you're also my friend."

"Yeah… Does that surprise you?"

Maka seemed to think long and hard about that; Soul could almost hear the mental cogs turning in that well-oiled machine of a brain. "Maybe it does. I mean, you're the first guy I've ever really hung out with. I wonder how that happened."

Soul shrugged. "Beats me. All I know is that you kept stalking me." He barked out a laugh which quickly earned him a fist to the stomach. He doubled over and clutched his stomach in feigned agony. When he looked up at her with what he hoped was a pitiful expression, Maka was glaring back down at him, though Soul could tell it was forced. She didn't have as much vindictive fire in her eyes as she did during their first encounters.

"Okay…" he wheezed the two syllables out. "Want me to walk you to class?"

Maka scoffed but a bit of pink returned to her cheeks. "I'm fine to get there on my own. What about you? Don't you have a class to get to?"

"I would if I even cared enough to go," Soul replied nonchalantly.

Maka gave him a quizzical look at that; her gaze seeming to deconstruct his very nature and personality, trying to make sense of what he was and piece it back together in a way she'd understand. Soon, however, she tired of this and closed her eyes with a soft exhale. "Whatever, Soul. I'll see ya."

As she turned her back to him and made her way to the end of the hallway, Soul watched her. He wanted to make her feel the way he did under her gaze just now: a feeling that this was the one person in the world who could fully understand him, if she just gave enough effort to try.

He knew she needed someone like that; that's why he was determined now more than ever to break her uncaring façade.

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 **A/N: See you next update, guys! :) Stay awesome!**


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